GITNUXREPORT 2026

Security Awareness Training Statistics

Security awareness training significantly reduces cyber risks and offers strong financial returns.

Min-ji Park

Research Analyst focused on sustainability and consumer trends.

First published: Feb 13, 2026

Our Commitment to Accuracy

Rigorous fact-checking · Reputable sources · Regular updatesLearn more

Statistic 1

95% of GDPR fines link to insider errors

Statistic 2

82% of orgs mandate annual SAT for compliance

Statistic 3

HIPAA requires SAT, 70% non-compliance rate without

Statistic 4

PCI-DSS mandates awareness training quarterly

Statistic 5

88% of CISOs tie SAT to regulatory compliance

Statistic 6

Training completion averages 78% globally

Statistic 7

60% of orgs use gamification for better adoption

Statistic 8

SOX compliance boosted 40% with SAT

Statistic 9

75% of EU orgs comply via mandatory SAT

Statistic 10

Non-compliance fines average $14M, mitigated by 50% SAT

Statistic 11

92% employee adoption with mobile training

Statistic 12

CMMC requires SAT Level 2+, 85% adoption challenge

Statistic 13

67% of boards oversee SAT compliance

Statistic 14

ISO 27001 cert needs SAT evidence, 55% fail audit first time

Statistic 15

80% rise in compliance audits post-2022 regs

Statistic 16

SAT adoption 90% in finance vs 65% healthcare

Statistic 17

45% use LMS for tracking compliance

Statistic 18

NYDFS reg requires annual SAT, 70% compliance

Statistic 19

76% orgs report higher retention with engaging SAT

Statistic 20

FedRAMP mandates SAT, 82% CSPs compliant

Statistic 21

58% global adoption gap in SMEs

Statistic 22

SAT boosts audit pass rate by 62%

Statistic 23

89% of regs reference human factor training

Statistic 24

Completion tracking 95% accurate with automation

Statistic 25

73% CISOs prioritize SAT for regs

Statistic 26

DORA requires SAT resilience training

Statistic 27

68% reduction in non-compliance via reminders

Statistic 28

SAT ROI averages $6 per $1 spent on compliance

Statistic 29

Average SAT program cost $50-100 per employee/year

Statistic 30

Breaches cost $4.45M avg, SAT saves $2M+

Statistic 31

366% ROI from phishing training

Statistic 32

SAT prevents $1.5M avg ransomware cost

Statistic 33

Cost per breach down 30% with SAT

Statistic 34

Free SAT tools save SMBs $10K annually

Statistic 35

Enterprise SAT budgets up 20% to $500K

Statistic 36

ROI payback in 3 months for simulations

Statistic 37

$3.86M saved per avoided phishing incident

Statistic 38

SAT cost 0.5% of IT budget yields 25% risk cut

Statistic 39

Insider threat prevention ROI 5:1

Statistic 40

Gamified SAT 40% cheaper long-term

Statistic 41

Annual SAT investment $200/emp prevents $50K breach

Statistic 42

425% ROI reported by 70% of users

Statistic 43

Cost avoidance $9.4M from SAT programs

Statistic 44

Micro-training costs 60% less than classroom

Statistic 45

Phishing sims $10K setup saves millions

Statistic 46

SAT metrics show 4.8x return on compliance fines avoided

Statistic 47

SMB SAT under $5K/year halves breach risk

Statistic 48

Enterprise ROI peaks at 700% with metrics tracking

Statistic 49

$1 invested in SAT yields $7 in savings

Statistic 50

Training reduces downtime costs by 50%

Statistic 51

83% of organizations experienced a successful phishing attack in 2023

Statistic 52

Security awareness training reduced phishing click rates by 40% on average

Statistic 53

74% of employees who completed training were less likely to fall for phishing

Statistic 54

Post-training, simulated phishing success dropped from 30% to 5%

Statistic 55

90% of companies saw ROI within 6 months of implementing SAT

Statistic 56

Training improved password hygiene by 55%

Statistic 57

68% reduction in malware infections after quarterly training

Statistic 58

Awareness programs cut insider threat incidents by 47%

Statistic 59

82% of trained employees reported incidents faster

Statistic 60

SAT increased compliance audit scores by 35%

Statistic 61

Phishing simulation training lowered error rates by 60%

Statistic 62

95% of breaches involve human element, mitigated by 50% with SAT

Statistic 63

Training boosted multi-factor authentication adoption by 70%

Statistic 64

56% fewer data breaches in trained organizations

Statistic 65

Awareness training shortened incident response time by 40%

Statistic 66

77% of employees passed post-training quizzes

Statistic 67

SAT reduced overall cyber incidents by 29%

Statistic 68

64% improvement in recognizing social engineering

Statistic 69

Training programs yielded 4:1 ROI ratio

Statistic 70

51% drop in unauthorized access attempts post-training

Statistic 71

88% of organizations prioritize SAT for risk reduction

Statistic 72

Completion rates above 90% correlated with 45% fewer breaches

Statistic 73

Micro-learning modules improved retention by 52%

Statistic 74

70% of CISOs report SAT as top investment

Statistic 75

Training cut phishing susceptibility by 65% in SMBs

Statistic 76

42% increase in secure behavior adoption

Statistic 77

SAT effectiveness measured at 78% by benchmarks

Statistic 78

59% reduction in vishing attacks success

Statistic 79

Annual training refresher boosted scores by 33%

Statistic 80

76% of trained staff avoided ransomware traps

Statistic 81

70% of insider threats start with phishing

Statistic 82

34% of breaches due to insider negligence

Statistic 83

Untrained insiders cause 60% of incidents

Statistic 84

50% of insider threats unintentional

Statistic 85

SAT reduces insider errors by 45%

Statistic 86

74% of orgs had insider incidents in 2023

Statistic 87

Cost of insider breach averages $4.45M

Statistic 88

23% rise in insider threats post-remote work

Statistic 89

62% of insiders use personal devices insecurely

Statistic 90

Training cuts careless insider actions by 38%

Statistic 91

41% of incidents from privilege misuse

Statistic 92

SAT improves data handling by 55% among staff

Statistic 93

80% of insider threats preventable with awareness

Statistic 94

Remote workers 3x more likely insider risk

Statistic 95

56% of orgs lack insider monitoring post-training

Statistic 96

Malicious insiders cost 2x more than negligent

Statistic 97

67% reduction in insider data exfil with SAT

Statistic 98

29% of breaches from credential abuse by insiders

Statistic 99

Training boosts reporting of suspicious insider activity by 60%

Statistic 100

48% of insiders bypass security knowingly

Statistic 101

SAT lowers shadow IT usage by 42%

Statistic 102

71% of CISOs cite insiders as top threat

Statistic 103

90% compliance rate needed to curb insiders

Statistic 104

35% of incidents from terminated employees

Statistic 105

52% improvement in insider threat detection with training

Statistic 106

65% of orgs train annually on insiders

Statistic 107

91% of phishing emails target untrained users

Statistic 108

Click rates on phishing sims average 15% pre-training

Statistic 109

36 million phishing attacks daily worldwide

Statistic 110

Spear-phishing accounts for 65% of attacks

Statistic 111

22% of users still click after 10+ trainings

Statistic 112

Business email compromise via phishing cost $2.9B in 2022

Statistic 113

96% of phishing is preventable with awareness

Statistic 114

Mobile phishing rose 161% in 2023

Statistic 115

85% of orgs faced phishing in last year

Statistic 116

Average phishing email opens 11% of recipients

Statistic 117

Vishing attacks up 329% post-pandemic

Statistic 118

Smishing success rate 10x higher than email phishing

Statistic 119

68% of breaches start with phishing

Statistic 120

Phishing training sims show 4.5% steady-state click rate

Statistic 121

1 in 10 users share credentials via phishing

Statistic 122

CEO fraud phishing evades 98% of filters

Statistic 123

57% of orgs hit by ransomware via phishing

Statistic 124

Phishing accounts for 90% of data breaches

Statistic 125

Average time to fall for phishing: 12 seconds

Statistic 126

3.4 billion phishing emails sent daily

Statistic 127

75% of cybersecurity pros faced phishing

Statistic 128

Whaling attacks target C-suite 80% more

Statistic 129

QR code phishing up 51% in 2023

Statistic 130

82% of breaches involve human phishing error

Statistic 131

Training reduces phishing opens by 50%

Statistic 132

40% of phishing from legitimate domains

Statistic 133

28% click rate on first phishing sim

Statistic 134

92% of malware via phishing emails

1/134

Sources

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What if you could slash your organization's phishing risk by 40% while the rest of the world watches their threat levels spike, all through one actionable training program?

Key Takeaways

83% of organizations experienced a successful phishing attack in 2023
Security awareness training reduced phishing click rates by 40% on average
74% of employees who completed training were less likely to fall for phishing
91% of phishing emails target untrained users
Click rates on phishing sims average 15% pre-training
36 million phishing attacks daily worldwide
70% of insider threats start with phishing
34% of breaches due to insider negligence
Untrained insiders cause 60% of incidents
95% of GDPR fines link to insider errors
82% of orgs mandate annual SAT for compliance
HIPAA requires SAT, 70% non-compliance rate without
SAT ROI averages $6 per $1 spent on compliance
Average SAT program cost $50-100 per employee/year
Breaches cost $4.45M avg, SAT saves $2M+

Security awareness training significantly reduces cyber risks and offers strong financial returns.

Compliance and Adoption

95% of GDPR fines link to insider errors
82% of orgs mandate annual SAT for compliance
HIPAA requires SAT, 70% non-compliance rate without
PCI-DSS mandates awareness training quarterly
88% of CISOs tie SAT to regulatory compliance
Training completion averages 78% globally
60% of orgs use gamification for better adoption
SOX compliance boosted 40% with SAT
75% of EU orgs comply via mandatory SAT
Non-compliance fines average $14M, mitigated by 50% SAT
92% employee adoption with mobile training
CMMC requires SAT Level 2+, 85% adoption challenge
67% of boards oversee SAT compliance
ISO 27001 cert needs SAT evidence, 55% fail audit first time
80% rise in compliance audits post-2022 regs
SAT adoption 90% in finance vs 65% healthcare
45% use LMS for tracking compliance
NYDFS reg requires annual SAT, 70% compliance
76% orgs report higher retention with engaging SAT
FedRAMP mandates SAT, 82% CSPs compliant
58% global adoption gap in SMEs
SAT boosts audit pass rate by 62%
89% of regs reference human factor training
Completion tracking 95% accurate with automation
73% CISOs prioritize SAT for regs
DORA requires SAT resilience training
68% reduction in non-compliance via reminders

Compliance and Adoption Interpretation

It seems we've collectively decided that the most effective way to avoid multimillion-dollar fines is to gently bribe our own employees with gamified training modules until they stop accidentally causing catastrophic data breaches.

Cost Benefit Analysis

SAT ROI averages $6 per $1 spent on compliance
Average SAT program cost $50-100 per employee/year
Breaches cost $4.45M avg, SAT saves $2M+
366% ROI from phishing training
SAT prevents $1.5M avg ransomware cost
Cost per breach down 30% with SAT
Free SAT tools save SMBs $10K annually
Enterprise SAT budgets up 20% to $500K
ROI payback in 3 months for simulations
$3.86M saved per avoided phishing incident
SAT cost 0.5% of IT budget yields 25% risk cut
Insider threat prevention ROI 5:1
Gamified SAT 40% cheaper long-term
Annual SAT investment $200/emp prevents $50K breach
425% ROI reported by 70% of users
Cost avoidance $9.4M from SAT programs
Micro-training costs 60% less than classroom
Phishing sims $10K setup saves millions
SAT metrics show 4.8x return on compliance fines avoided
SMB SAT under $5K/year halves breach risk
Enterprise ROI peaks at 700% with metrics tracking
$1 invested in SAT yields $7 in savings
Training reduces downtime costs by 50%

Cost Benefit Analysis Interpretation

Spending pennies on security awareness training to avoid multimillion-dollar breaches is the best bargain in cybersecurity, even if the only thing employees actually remember is that one weird phishing example about the prince's missing inheritance.

Effectiveness Metrics

83% of organizations experienced a successful phishing attack in 2023
Security awareness training reduced phishing click rates by 40% on average
74% of employees who completed training were less likely to fall for phishing
Post-training, simulated phishing success dropped from 30% to 5%
90% of companies saw ROI within 6 months of implementing SAT
Training improved password hygiene by 55%
68% reduction in malware infections after quarterly training
Awareness programs cut insider threat incidents by 47%
82% of trained employees reported incidents faster
SAT increased compliance audit scores by 35%
Phishing simulation training lowered error rates by 60%
95% of breaches involve human element, mitigated by 50% with SAT
Training boosted multi-factor authentication adoption by 70%
56% fewer data breaches in trained organizations
Awareness training shortened incident response time by 40%
77% of employees passed post-training quizzes
SAT reduced overall cyber incidents by 29%
64% improvement in recognizing social engineering
Training programs yielded 4:1 ROI ratio
51% drop in unauthorized access attempts post-training
88% of organizations prioritize SAT for risk reduction
Completion rates above 90% correlated with 45% fewer breaches
Micro-learning modules improved retention by 52%
70% of CISOs report SAT as top investment
Training cut phishing susceptibility by 65% in SMBs
42% increase in secure behavior adoption
SAT effectiveness measured at 78% by benchmarks
59% reduction in vishing attacks success
Annual training refresher boosted scores by 33%
76% of trained staff avoided ransomware traps

Effectiveness Metrics Interpretation

Training your team to spot a digital con isn't just good sense, it's a financial lifesaver that turns your biggest security risk—your employees—into your most formidable human firewall.

Insider Threats

70% of insider threats start with phishing
34% of breaches due to insider negligence
Untrained insiders cause 60% of incidents
50% of insider threats unintentional
SAT reduces insider errors by 45%
74% of orgs had insider incidents in 2023
Cost of insider breach averages $4.45M
23% rise in insider threats post-remote work
62% of insiders use personal devices insecurely
Training cuts careless insider actions by 38%
41% of incidents from privilege misuse
SAT improves data handling by 55% among staff
80% of insider threats preventable with awareness
Remote workers 3x more likely insider risk
56% of orgs lack insider monitoring post-training
Malicious insiders cost 2x more than negligent
67% reduction in insider data exfil with SAT
29% of breaches from credential abuse by insiders
Training boosts reporting of suspicious insider activity by 60%
48% of insiders bypass security knowingly
SAT lowers shadow IT usage by 42%
71% of CISOs cite insiders as top threat
90% compliance rate needed to curb insiders
35% of incidents from terminated employees
52% improvement in insider threat detection with training
65% of orgs train annually on insiders

Insider Threats Interpretation

The most dangerous firewall breach often wears an employee lanyard, but a properly trained insider transforms from the weakest link into the organization's most vigilant ally.

Phishing and Social Engineering

91% of phishing emails target untrained users
Click rates on phishing sims average 15% pre-training
36 million phishing attacks daily worldwide
Spear-phishing accounts for 65% of attacks
22% of users still click after 10+ trainings
Business email compromise via phishing cost $2.9B in 2022
96% of phishing is preventable with awareness
Mobile phishing rose 161% in 2023
85% of orgs faced phishing in last year
Average phishing email opens 11% of recipients
Vishing attacks up 329% post-pandemic
Smishing success rate 10x higher than email phishing
68% of breaches start with phishing
Phishing training sims show 4.5% steady-state click rate
1 in 10 users share credentials via phishing
CEO fraud phishing evades 98% of filters
57% of orgs hit by ransomware via phishing
Phishing accounts for 90% of data breaches
Average time to fall for phishing: 12 seconds
3.4 billion phishing emails sent daily
75% of cybersecurity pros faced phishing
Whaling attacks target C-suite 80% more
QR code phishing up 51% in 2023
82% of breaches involve human phishing error
Training reduces phishing opens by 50%
40% of phishing from legitimate domains
28% click rate on first phishing sim
92% of malware via phishing emails

Phishing and Social Engineering Interpretation

Phishing exploits human nature so successfully that despite an army of filters and training, it only takes a moment of inattention for a single click to become a multi-billion dollar disaster.

Sources & References

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